Ma Peng was startled, who was speaking?
More importantly, how did the other party know his innermost thoughts at this moment?
If Tian Xiong found out about this, he would have no chance of survival.
Ma Peng was so scared that sweat poured down his forehead. He looked at Tian Xiong in panic, afraid of being killed by a palm strike.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk... so timid and cowardly, how can you achieve great things."
The cold voice sounded again in Ma Peng's mind, filled with sarcasm.
Ma Peng immediately determined that it was the voice of Old Ancestor Jiu You. The other party actually wanted him to get rid of Tian Xiong. What was his scheme?
Was this a case of killing the donkey after it had served its purpose, or was Old Ancestor Jiu You valuing him and intending to nurture him?
Ma Peng's thoughts raced, but he could never guess Old Ancestor Jiu You's true intentions.
As if disappointed with Ma Peng, Old Ancestor Jiu You stopped speaking.
"Peng'er, you're sweating profusely, are you not feeling well?"
Tian Xiong noticed that Ma Peng was acting strangely and asked with concern. Naturally, he couldn't hear what Old Ancestor Jiu You was saying to Ma Peng, and he didn't realize that disaster was imminent.
"Your son is fine."
Ma Peng pretended to be calm, not revealing any flaws, and asked, "Foster Father, can I accompany you next time we deliver blood food to the Old Ancestor?"
"No, you should have less contact with the Old Ancestor."
Tian Xiong immediately refused. He knew Old Ancestor Jiu You's methods well and feared that Ma Peng would follow in his footsteps and become a lackey.
Upon hearing this, Ma Peng immediately thought that Tian Xiong wanted to monopolize the benefits bestowed by Old Ancestor Jiu You, and his anger surged.
A hint of killing intent arose in the depths of his pupils.
Inside the ancient tomb, Old Ancestor Jiu You smiled broadly. "Envy, rage, greed, sloth, gluttony... I never expected to encounter a person possessed by the seven deadly sins. Indeed, the most hideous thing in the world is the human heart. I will ignite all seven evil thoughts in Ma Peng's heart and eventually turn them into my sustenance to help me escape."
Tian Xiong would never have imagined that despite his wholehearted service to Old Ancestor Jiu You, he would still become a pawn that could be discarded at will.
...
By the pond, under the willow tree.
Ji Mo was lazily feeding the dragon fish, his gaze occasionally sweeping westward, his brow furrowed.
He could feel the black mist rising from the primeval forest growing thicker, accompanied by surging blood-red light. The eerie aura made him feel very uncomfortable.
"Could it be that something sinister has happened in the forest? I have a bad feeling about this."
Ji Mo pondered whether to go and investigate to find out what was going on.
Just then, a figure appeared outside the courtyard.
Ji Mo's gaze sharpened, and he immediately became furious.
It was him!
That old man with a penchant for peeping.
Before, he only spied from afar, but now he had become so audacious as to come to his doorstep.
The old man outside the courtyard was no longer the immortal and dignified appearance of a celestial being from before. He had deliberately changed his attire and transformed into an old farmer on the verge of death.
"Ji Mo, today I will have a showdown with you and see if you are a dragon or a worm."
A sharp glint flashed in the old man's eyes. His previous attempt to scheme against Ji Mo had backfired, resulting in the loss of his life-bound magical artifact. This time, he had to get his revenge.
Most importantly, judging by the calendar, the great fortune in this place was about to arrive. He had to understand Ji Mo's true intentions to prevent any unforeseen circumstances.
"I, Qian Mian Ren Tu Hong Qian Tu, have roamed for hundreds of years and have seen all sorts of situations. I will first suppress this fellow with my aura and then seize the opportunity to force out his origins."
The old man cleared his throat, having deliberated and devised a plan.
Unexpectedly, the courtyard gate creaked open, and Ji Mo, seething with anger, emerged holding a fire poker.
"Hey, you old rascal, how dare you show up here!" Ji Mo shouted.
Hong Qian Tu was startled on the spot.
This brat actually struck first, how insidious!
At this moment, his aura weakened by three points.
"Don't think I won't recognize you just because you've disguised yourself. You've been peeping at me for years, and now you've come to my door. What exactly do you want?"
Ji Mo raised the fire poker, pointed it at Hong Qian Tu's nose, and accused him loudly, spitting all over the other party.
Hong Qian Tu was forced to retreat repeatedly, his aura weakening further.
He was horrified. He had thought his secret investigations were flawless, but he hadn't expected that everything had already been seen through by the other party.
Then, all his self-congratulatory disguises must have seemed incredibly laughable to the other party.
Hong Qian Tu's face flushed with embarrassment. Just as he was about to retort, he took a closer look at the fire poker in Ji Mo's hand and was so enraged that he almost spat blood on the spot.
Wasn't this his life-bound magical artifact, the Hun Yuan Cudgel?
How did it end up like this?
The indestructible, epic-level magical artifact had been whittled down into a useless piece of junk, turned into a fire poker!
This was a blatant threat.
The meaning was obvious: the other party was clearly telling him that he could easily ruin the other's life-bound magical artifact, so dealing with him would be a piece of cake.
Hong Qian Tu swallowed hard, forcing himself to remain calm and not lose his composure.
"Since that's the case, let's speak frankly. We are all in the same boat, so why pretend to be ignorant of each other's purpose."
Hong Qian Tu decided to lay his cards on the table. They were both living in seclusion, here for the White Emperor's tomb underground, intending to seize the great fortune within, so there was no need for pretense.
Now that it was out in the open, he wanted to see how things would be resolved and if there was any possibility of cooperation.
"Who is in the same boat as you? We are definitely not."
Ji Mo said dismissively.
A stinking peeping tom actually shamelessly claimed to be in the same boat as him. What shamelessness!
Hong Qian Tu's brows immediately furrowed. Judging by his words, Ji Mo did not intend to cooperate.
He felt that things would not end well and that it was highly likely that strength would be the deciding factor. He snorted, "Do you perhaps want to fight me?"
In the end, everything had to be settled by fists. The weak had no right to speak, so Hong Qian Tu also revealed his tough side.
"You? I can beat five of you with one hand. My 'Jie Hua Fa' will ensure you can't handle the consequences."
Ji Mo glanced at Hong Qian Tu's emaciated body with utter disdain.
Did this old man think he was out of his mind to want to fight me?
Although he couldn't cultivate, Ji Mo was confident in his martial arts skills, especially his "Jie, Hua, Fa" techniques, which he had practiced to perfection. Dealing with an old man would be no problem.
Hong Qian Tu's pupils contracted, his expression extremely solemn. He thought to himself, could this fellow truly be more powerful than him, otherwise, why would he be so arrogant?
Did he genuinely possess skills, or was he just putting on a show?
What kind of divine ability was this "Jie Hua Fa"? It seemed very powerful, and he had to be careful.
"Your Excellency, do not push your luck too far. I, Qian Mian Ren Tu Hong Qian Tu, am not a mere figure of speech."
Hong Qian Tu directly invoked his title, believing that the other party would surely be impressed.
Qian Mian Ren Tu Hong Qian Tu had been renowned throughout the world three hundred years ago. His appearance was ever-changing, and he achieved enlightenment through killing. His hands were stained with blood, and he was a great harbinger of death.
"Never heard of it."
Ji Mo shook his head, his contempt deepening. An old man of his age still used such a chuunibyo title, was he trying to scare children?
Hong Qian Tu did not believe that Ji Mo had never heard of his title. He clearly saw the disdain in Ji Mo's eyes, which clearly indicated that he was not taking him seriously.
He had never been belittled by anyone before, and this was a great insult.
If it could be tolerated, then it could not be tolerated!
Hong Qian Tu was furious. He took a step forward, his fist like a meteor, smashing towards Ji Mo's face.
Bang!
Before the attack even landed, a strange phenomenon occurred. Behind Ji Mo, a terrifying aura erupted fiercely.